


Trying Something New

by RomeoandAntoinette



Category: Persona 4
Genre: Canon Compliant, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-19
Updated: 2019-07-19
Packaged: 2020-07-08 15:16:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19871740
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RomeoandAntoinette/pseuds/RomeoandAntoinette
Summary: Yu experiences a lot of firsts during his year in the rural town of Yasoinaba. His first group of close friends, his first time having nightly dinners with family...and his first love. [Souyo]





	Trying Something New

Yu Narukami rarely got close to people.

At least, he rarely got close enough to people to get to know them.

Anything beyond a simple ‘hello’ and routine exchange of pleasantries was something he really only indulged with when chatting with his parents or relatives. There were also a few classmates that he would hang out with after school that fit loosely into said criteria, but the obligatory time spent with them was more of a coping mechanism to avoid boredom than it was any actual pursuit of lasting friendship.

It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy the company of others. Far from it. Yu fancied himself a social person who had his cursory group of school friends, participated in intermural activities and even went on dates a couple of times a year. However, none of his bonds ever deepened beyond the surface-level.

Eventually, friends changed homerooms and became regular peers. Relationships ended kindly and comfortably. Almost _too_ comfortably.

He had friends, but none of them were ‘best’ friends.

That was before he literally rolled into the small town of Yasoinaba.

There, a classmate more outgoing and welcoming than anyone he knew from Tokyo literally fell headfirst into his life.

Actually, said classmate fell headfirst into a trash can first….and then into Yu’s life by proxy.

It was only after Yu rescued him from the grimy demise that the teen confided in him that his name was Yosuke Hanamura.

Less than a handful of minutes later, Yosuke told Yu (who was still a stoic new face in the comely country community) his entire life story leading up to their encounter.

He’d learned quite a few new things about his new acquaintance without having to make any social effort.

For example, Yu learned that Yosuke had also transferred to Inaba and Yasogami High from a school in the city, which is also where his family had lived before they’d moved to Inaba. The unfortunately timed relocation was due to Yosuke's father’s ownership of the local Junes department store franchise. He also learned that he had an embarrassingly obvious crush on a coworker named Saki, which Yu found more cute than annoying.

It had been a lot to take in, but Yu took note of every mention he could.

After all, the two teens were classmates. It also seemed like they had quite a bit in common, despite their surface-level differences being more polarized than the sun and moon.

They were the two ends of a magnet; positive and negative. Extrovert and introvert. Local prince and newbie transfer student.

What did it hurt to be kind and listen? He had an entire year to kill in the new town before he could return home. Anything to make the journey more pleasant was welcome, and Yosuke seemed like the perfect candidate.

If all went well, maybe they could even become friends. Good friends, even.

It was worth a shot.

What was the harm in trying something new?

* * *

As his days in Yasoinaba tallied up, Yu began to learn things.

More accurately, he _had_ to learn many new things. Awakening a physical embodiment of one’s soul and using it to combat hellish demons from an alternate dimension would most likely coerce anyone into changing their thought processes pertaining to their own existence.

Yu was hardly exempt from the existential crisis, but all things considered, he powered through with relatively high amounts of poise and grace.

However, that was another thing he’d _had_ to do. There had been more pressing matters that needed his attention. He hadn’t had too much time to debate about settling into his new role as a leader when he had people that needed him.

When Yosuke’s Shadow, a beady-eyed and sneering mirror image, stepped out of the darkness and began assailing his real-world counterpart with cruel visions and revelations, Yu had been physically unable to stand idly by and watch.

That day, he emerged from the sidelines to fight the battle. He intervened and fought tooth and nail against Yosuke’s Shadow in an attempt to prevent it from screaming any more horrifying thoughts from the most private parts of Yosuke’s mind. He also fought practically for his own safety. It was an impossible battle to flee from without being detected. Plus, it wasn’t likely he would have been able to escape with an unconscious Yosuke in tow even with Teddie’s guidance.

In short, fighting his way out with his newfound power was the only real solution.

Throughout the entire battle, a small part of his brain remained focused on Yosuke’s collapsed body. Even when pain ran through his veins like liquid fire and seared his limbs to the point of numbness, he always glanced over to see if Yosuke, a guy he barely knew, was still okay.

At the time, his mind was too preoccupied to ponder the behavior for long. After all, he wanted to survive.

The battle had been arduous and even hopeless at times, but one look at Yosuke’s weak body was enough to inspire perseverance.

He wasn’t sure why.

After a roulette of trial-and-error, Yu beat down Yosuke’s negative emotions and triumphed over them, proving to his new friend that even the darker parts of his soul didn’t disqualify him as a flawed but good person.

At first, Yosuke had been reluctant to see himself with the same forgiveness that Yu had.

Then, with hesitant acceptance, he earned his Persona.

However, after some encouragement and a few kind words, Yosuke followed suit happily. Yu’s presence and acceptance of his darker thoughts had effectively turned Yosuke’s weaknesses into the strength to pursue self-betterment.

The strength to fight back against everything that has wronged him.

From that day onward, they were joined in a common mission to pursue the truth behind what had happened to Saki…and about what was happening in the town of Inaba as a whole.

* * *

Their fate as a duo was sealed. They were official partners in crime, united by a common goal to solve the mystery of the identity of the supernatural serial killer in Inaba.

The months sprinted onward from there.

The investigation proceeded swiftly, but the weight of Saki’s death never fully alleviated from Yosuke’s shoulders.

It was never too obvious, but since he’d known Yosuke longer than some of the others, Yu noticed the little things. For example, Yosuke fidgeted a lot, even more so than usual, whenever the topic of Saki’s death was broached during the investigation. It was a tender subject.

Whenever the team gathered in the Junes food court, Yosuke’s cheerful attitude always turned dour the moment they got down to business.

Yosuke’s hidden sadness wasn’t only depressing for Yu to witness, but also…somewhat surprising. At least, in theory.

Even after hearing all the vicious things Saki felt about Yosuke, he never held any of the words against her. Not once did he spite her or curse her. A lesser person would have held each venomous word against her, death be damned.

Instead, Yosuke set himself apart by keeping her on the same high pedestal he’d always held her at. He vowed to avenge her death and find the killer while still holding her memories and the sacrifices she made for her family in high esteem. It took strength that Yu wasn’t even sure he possessed.

He learned that day Yosuke was more kind-hearted and mature than he let on.

* * *

Yu learned pretty quickly that Yosuke was sensitive.

Or, more accurately, Yosuke was paranoid about others learning how sensitive he truly was. Any situation that challenged his views on the world seemed to give Yosuke visible anxiety. Kanji’s Shadow was the most prominent example, although in Yu’s opinion, there wasn’t a person in their entire group that had approached said situation constructively and with the poise it deserved.

…But regardless.

Yu figured that Yosuke’s fears mostly likely stemmed from the years of toxic masculinity his friends in Tokyo had exposed him to before cutting all their ties after Yosuke and his family moved to Inaba. The cut had festered into a nasty wound over the years, and the lack of consistency in his life had hardly helped.

Like him, Yosuke had spent most of his life transferring from school to school, and from city to city.

However, unlike him, Yosuke was resented for something out of his control: the Junes brand. Meanwhile, Yu was praised for his city boy savoir-faire. They were so similar, but so different.

It was like they’d grown up in the same house, but Yu had exited through the front door and Yosuke had stumbled out the back.

Those similarities were noted diligently, but sadly, by the soft-spoken young man.

* * *

As the two spent more time together, Yosuke began to change subtly but definitively.

He slept snugly beside Yu in a tent on the school camping trip. He allowed Yu to take his hand or put his arms around him in battle when one of them needed extra support. They were even inseparable at the hot springs located within the Amagi Inn when they were donned in little more the damp towels. 

His off-color comments about his comrades also lessened, especially against Kanji. While he was still prone to becoming easily flustered, he broached each uncomfortable situation with a certain finesse one usually only acquires from personal experience.

The closeness didn’t bother Yu. In fact, he enjoyed it.

But, what did _enjoy_ mean?

It was a new feeling. Yu spent more than one sleepless night ruminating over it. In fact, he spent what must have been countless hours between bouts of fighting Shadows and looting dungeons thinking about the logistics of his feelings for the person who had quickly become his best and most trusted friend.

It was new territory for him. A totally new experience he’d never felt before. Even with all his previous friendships and date nights combined, the feeling of fondness her felt for Yosuke surpassed that gross amount by embarrassingly large leaps and bounds.

How had such a thing happened?

A deep, selfish part of his heart wanted to weep for joy at the fact that he’d finally found a connection. After almost eighteen years, he had finally found a person he wanted to bond with in a special way that nobody else had ever earned before.

Yet, the tears his soul wept were also ones of sadness.

Because he knew it was a bond Yosuke didn’t want.

* * *

Yu was resolved to keep his feelings completely secret. Expressing his true thoughts to Yosuke wasn’t worth ruining the best friendship either of them had likely had in their entire lives.

It would destroy them as a duo, and Yu didn’t want that. Even the mere idea of losing Yosuke gave him teeth-chattering anxiety.

So, each cloying thought about how bright Yosuke’s eyes were, or how his smile was adorably lopsided, or the way his collarbones peeked through his shirt when he laughed hard enough, or…just how much Yu adored absolutely everything about him, was snuffed out before it had the chance to smolder.

It used to be so easy to eliminate the emotions he felt.

With his old friends and relationships, all it took to eliminate the loss from his mind and soul was pure will.

Yu even made up a little mental exercise for it. Almost like a ritual for the dead. He’d close his eyes and imagine encapsulating the feelings and emotions he felt in a large pill, almost like the caffeine gel tablets he sometimes took to stay awake during dungeon runs of late-night study sessions.

Then, he’d imagine the jellified form melting out of his heart, like a Topsicle in summer, before walking away and leaving the sticky-sweet mess of heartbreak behind.

Out of sight, out of mind.

Izanagi didn’t much care for the tactic.

As his days with Yosuke continued forward, it became harder and harder for the young man to forget all the little things he cherished about his best friend. When he tried to smash them down, a violent shock through his chest jolted him out of his thoughts and back into reality.

This usually resulted in his wincing in pain or gasping loudly in the middle of a random conversation, as if he’d violently stirred from a nightmare.

The always earned him a couple of concerned stares.

“Woah, Narukami, are you okay?”

“Senpai! What’s wrong?”

“Dude, something wrong? You ain’t looking so hot.”

And, of course…

“Partner?” His voice was always so tender. “You feelin’ okay?”

Yu wanted to laugh.

No. no, he really wasn’t.

* * *

One day, Yu couldn’t take it anymore.

His chest was thumping. His heart was pounding. He’d barely been home for fifteen minutes after Saturday classes, but he felt like he had just sprinted a marathon.

It wasn’t feasible to hide how he felt anymore. It was driving him physically and mentally crazy.

He snapped off the couch in his bedroom and grabbed his flip phone. Before he could stop himself, he punched a simple text into the keyboard and pressed send.

The recipient: ‘Partner.’

_< < Meet me at the riverbank in 15?_

Since it was a Saturday afternoon, it was likely that Yosuke was off work. His dad was guilty of dumping a lot of Junes shifts on his son when they were short-staffed, but he tried to give Yosuke at least Saturdays off after school so he could at least have some semblance of a weekend.

As Yu suspected, a prompt response might his phone _ping!_

_> > sure! b there asap_

Yu knew he would be.

One brisk walk and a couple of nervous cat pets later, courtesy of the town’s many strays, and he was standing at the river’s sandy embankment.

It was later in the afternoon when he’d texted Yosuke, so many people were out doing their last-minute errands before turning in to make dinner. It was one of the quainter things about Inaba compared to larger cities. Everyone seemed to run on the same internal clock. There was a sense of silent camaraderie in the routine that was comforting to him.

Thankfully, the riverbank itself was tranquil compared to the more bustling streets of the shopping district he’d just passed through. Goldfinches fluttered amidst stems of wildflowers and children laughed far in the distance.

Yu took a seat on the nearest bench and waited for the familiar sound of tires turning and the rhythmic clinking of metal hardware.

Less than a few minutes later, Yosuke rolled down the grassy embankment on his bike. He came to stop that was precariously close to the water’s edge.

“Boom!” Yosuke declared proudly as he stylishly drifted to a stop. He popped off his bike and pumped a proud fist into the air. “Did you see that move, partner? I know, I know. Future action star right here. No autographs, please.”

Yu gave him a sideways smirk as he rose from his seat.

“Oh,” he said, feigning a shocked reaction. “There must be some mistake. See, I’m waiting here for my partner, Yosuke. You must be his handsome stunt-double.”

The determined fist was then lowered from the air to punch Yu playfully in the shoulder.

 _“Hey!”_ Yosuke squeaked unintentionally. Then, in a deeper pitch, he immediately tried to parry off the stunned reaction with something a little more level-headed. “Man, all of you fans are the same. No boundaries.”

While his second reply was less flustered than the first, Yu couldn’t help but notice the slight dusting of pink that now adorned his cheeks.

He dared to hope there was a slight chance that the incoming conversation wouldn’t have a catastrophic outcome.

“I can’t help it,” Yu replied with mock innocence. “I’m your biggest fan, after all.”

Another punch. While it probably looked more convincing to the average passerby, there was no real weight behind it. Especially considering Yu was well aware of how hard Yosuke could actually hit if he wanted to.

“You little…” Yosuke grumbled before relenting with a sigh and soft smile. “You’re a piece of work, partner. So, what’s up? Did you want to meet up to go somewhere?”

Yu’s heart revved in his chest like the engine of a finely tuned sports car.

“Uh, I actually texted you to meet up because I wanted to talk to you,” Yu confessed. “In person.”

Yosuke blinked. Then, he swiveled his head around the riverbank, as if he’d just been teleported to a strange planet and was examining his surroundings. “Um, here?”

Yu nodded.

“Oh, okay,” Yosuke shrugged. Then, a smile broke his hesitant expression. “Sure! Whatever you say, dude. Anything beats lazing around at home, and being with you is always a blast, so…”

Yosuke had no idea how difficult he was making things.

The teen joined Yu at the riverbank’s only stable bench a took a seat next to him. A year ago, Yosuke would have been too squeamish to even consider sitting next to another guy. Now, he didn’t hesitate a second to take a seat and stretch out his legs.

“So,” Yosuke said, tossing his friend a look. “Lay it on me.”

Yu took a deep breath to steady his mind and voice.

“Yosuke…” he began softly, “I need to get something off my chest. I need you to listen, and before you say anything…please let me say everything I want to say first.”

The sentiment immediately snapped Yosuke’s informal posture into a form that was more erect and attentive. Even his face stiffened. “Yikes, this must be serious. Okay, dude. I promise. I won’t…say or do anything until you’re done talking.”

Yu pulled his hands from his knees to clench them tightly.

“So, I’m going to be leaving Inaba in a few months, and I’ll be back home in the city,” Yu started. “It might be a while before we’re able to see each other face-to-face again.”

Yu could tell Yosuke was itching to reply, so he laughed and quickly added, “I know! ‘ _We’ll totally talk_ ,’ right? Yeah, I’d like that. I’d also love to come back for visits and holidays too. I’m going to miss all of you guys so much. You’ve all become like family to me. Our team, Dojima, Nanako, and…you too, Yosuke.”

The emphasis at the mention of his name caused Yosuke to waggle his brows in confusion. Then, suddenly, it was as if a lightbulb went off in his brain. His gold-flecked eyes shot open and his jaw dropped gracelessly.

“O-Oh,” he fumbled.

Well, no going back now.

Yu stared intently as the grass beneath his shoes and kept talking.

“Yosuke, I don’t think distance will ever matter between us,” Yu confessed. “I think, no matter what, we’ll always be friends. After all we’ve been through, I don’t think anything could pull us apart. I’m not worried about that…what I’m worried about is spending the rest of our friendship lying to you about how I feel. Lying about…the feelings I have for you.”

There was silence for another moment. Yu took another deep breath.

Then, all of a sudden, he heard Yosuke speak. A stunned sound tumbled from his lips.

“Why?”

Yu snapped his vision to Yosuke’s, fearing the worst. He figured that one glimpse at his friend’s face would show fear, disgust, or worst of all, unbridled rage.

No such emotion was reflected in Yosuke’s eyes, which suddenly looked oddly glassy.

“Yu, you’re serious?” Yosuke croaked softly. He sounded like he was about to cry. “You like me?”

He nodded and Yosuke pursed his lips. Then, a bitter laugh split the silence.

“I don’t get it,” Yosuke confessed. He double-over so that his head fell limply between his shoulders. “I know you’re not lying or saying it to make fun of me either. You’re telling the truth. You like me. _Holy shit._ ”

The buzzing in Yu’s heard went dead at the pain in his best friend’s voice. “Yosuke…”

“Yu, I want to be happy,” he replied. The tears in his eyes were now large enough that they were visibly perched on his lash line, ready to spill forth at the next blink.

Yu paused. “Wait. Happy?”

Yosuke barely managed a nod. “Yeah, I am happy. Or, I really want to be. It’s just…I don’t know. It’s so hard to…”

He took a risk and scooted closer to Yosuke. “No, it’s okay. I’m listening.”

His head turned slowly, an act that was hindered by the headphone still around his neck. “But…I don’t know what to say.”

Yu didn’t move away. “That doesn’t matter.”

The unwavering attention seemed to inspire Yosuke to push forward.

“Well, okay,” he relented as he shifted his position so that his body was angled toward Yu’s. “Okay. Well…yeah. I guess I should start by saying that…those feelings you said you feel? I feel them too. Or, I feel the same, I guess.”

Silver eyes flashed. “Really?”

Yosuke smiled sadly. “I also know that, when you leave, it’s going to be one of the hardest days of my life. I know we’re going to be able to talk and stuff…but some days, I don’t think that’ll be good enough. I’ll want to _see_ you.”

Yu felt a blush creep onto his face as he patiently waited for Yosuke to continue.

“There will be so many days when I’ll want to race out of my house to see you or tell you about something awesome or stupid that Teddie did, and you…won’t be there,” Yosuke mumbled. The words were as heavy as the tumbled rocks at the bottom of the Samegawa River. “You’re a hero who has brought people together through so many differences…and I’m angry that life is taking you away from us. Away from _me_.”

The cage around Yu’s heart unfurled like a rose.

The second the words left his lips, Izanagi’s overwhelming joy sent every fiber of Yu’s being into weightless elation.

The possessive statement also sent Yu’s cheeks aflame while his brain rushed to process the words and their potential meaning.

However, as a result of his friend’s evident embarrassment at the intimate implications, Yosuke lifted one of his balled fists to his forehead and mashed it against his brow. It was an overly physical reaction to the emotional wreckage his brain was attempting to endure.

“Gah, that’s so stupid!” Yosuke growled. “Ugh, I’m sorry, man. That’s such a shitty and selfish thing for me to think. After you told me how you feel and spilled your guts out, I went ahead and made everything about my own damn problems.”

Before Yosuke could attempt to stand up and walk away, Yu quickly took him by the shoulder and guided his friend back into his seat.

“Yosuke, wait!” Yu clamored. Then more, archly, he said, “You said you wouldn’t leave until I finished talking.”

Yosuke was silent. Then, as if they were at opposite ends of a magnetic force, Yosuke sank back into his seat slowly. Somehow, they seemed a few inches closer than before.

“Yu, I…”

One of Yu’s hands flew to his lips to shush his friend’s stressed ramblings. The tactic worked and effectively silenced Yosuke in a millisecond. It also appeared to calm him down significantly, which was another huge relief for the silver-haired leader.

“Yosuke…I have more to say,” Yu whispered huskily. Despite his tone, the sentence sounded more like a plea than a statement.

After a few moments, Yosuke nodded gently. The sensation of his lips brushing against Yu’s fingertips from the brief bobbing of his head created an arc of electricity that rocketed through him like lightning. He wondered briefly if Yosuke felt it too.

Gently, Yu whispered, “I want you to realize something. Izanagi, a Persona from within my own soul, had to call out to me for me to finally notice _him,_ and he’s literally a part of me. A part of my identity. My soul.”

His voice remained soft as his fingertips ghosted up Yosuke’s jaw until they were caressing his flushed cheek.

His face drifted close to Yosuke’s with each sway. He didn’t pull away. Even when he was close enough to see the flecks of gold in Yosuke’s wide eyes or the peachy tone of his lips, he couldn’t find the strength or desire to pull away. Thankfully, Yosuke seemed to feel the same and remained in a state of almost trancelike stillness while Yu spoke.

“Izanagi made it possible for me to enter the TV world, and he gave me the power to fight Shadows, but…”

They were _so_ close. A hair’s breadth apart, and yet, they were still distant enough to drive Yu insane. His hands blindly groped for Yosuke’s, which were braced firmly against the park bench.

The moment that their fingers laced, his last thread of restraint finally snapped.

“Even if none of that ever happened, even if we never stumbled across the Midnight Channel and I never rode into that gas station and received my powers…we still would have met,” Yu said. “There isn’t a probable universe or reality where you and I don’t meet.”

Yosuke sucked a breath between his teeth. “Oh… _Yu._ ”

Yu angled his head instinctually so his lips could brush the corner of Yosuke’s mouth. There was a brief quiver, and then, a moan of mutual desire. The sound warbled his senses and sent his brain spiraling into a frenzy.

But Yu couldn’t stop to enjoy the sensation yet. Not before he’d said everything he’d wanted to say for so long.

He continued, “I’m so happy that you and I are destined to find each other,” he gasped as he pressed another featherlight kiss to Yosuke’s cheek. “Even after both of us spent so much time on the outside of other people’s lives, that we came together to become best friends. To become partners.”

“Holy shit, Yu,” Yosuke sighed. He sounded so weak. “Please, I…”

“I love you, Yosuke.”

The spell that previously held them at bay was broken.

Their mouths slid together hot and fast, letting out a year of pent out passion in one swift gesture that blotted out everything else in the universe around them. All that remained was the searing sensation of each other’s mouths molded against each other, eager and soft with adoration.

Each part for air resulted only in a frantic gasp before they rocked back into each other’s arms. The embrace was awkwardly tangled and tense, but neither cared.

To them, it was kismet.

Pure perfection captured in a fleeting moment in time.

When they did finally break apart with a loud gasp for air, Yosuke finally spoke up again.

“I’m…sorry, Yu,” he panted. The hard breaths he was taking to fill his lungs couldn’t mask the goofy grin on his face. “I broke my promise. I…think I interrupted you after all.”

This time, Yu’s eyes were the ones to become glassy.

Laughter rumbled deeply in his chest as he lunged forward and captured his partner’s lips in another, passionate kiss.

After all, they had a lot of time to make up for.

Of all the firsts he’d experienced in the small town of Yasoinaba, his first long-distance relationship was one he was more than willing to try.

After all, what was the harm in trying something new?

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed this small, sweet fic. I originally thought it was going to be longer, but I didn't want to just...reiterate the game's events that we already knew just to see a different take on the ending, haha!
> 
> Also, I always loved that "Distance doesn't matter between us!" line that Yosuke yells to Yu as he leaves on the train. My imagination ran wild from there.
> 
> Thank you all for reading! I love you guys a bunch, and I'll see ya soon. <3


End file.
